was this duct papilloma protocol?

[Dixsonian]

Last week I had a breast biopsy to check for Paget's Disease.  The results were negative for cancer, thank God.  In reporting the results to me, the surgeon's nurse said that my bloody nipple was caused by "an abnormal, benign growth in a duct that the surgeon removed with the biopsy."  My understanding is that with milk duct papilloma it is necessary to scope the duct while it is bleeding, despite the obvious difficulty.  The procedure was done under general anesthetic and took a total of 20 minutes, so I do not think that a scope was used.  My follow up appointment is not for two more weeks.  Does this sound like I had milk duct papilloma, and that my surgeon used the standard protocol?

Kindest Regards

[PaulMD]

Hi there.

There is really no definite breast papilloma protocol, and treatment practices can really vary from one center to another.  Some would advocate injecting a dye inside the ducts and getting an xray of the breast to outline the inside contour of the ducts, and therefore look for any growths such as papilloma.

Scoping is difficult procedure and it will take a specialized center to do this, and the papilloma will usually be hard to detect if there are no active bleeding.  It is best to discuss the other diagnostic protocols with your surgeon and hopefully localize the source of the bleed.

Regards.